Our first baby was induced at 37.5w, pitocin fueled for 9 hours and 45 mins of pushing. 

Number two decided to be different in every way. 

Not having experienced labor starting naturally with our first, and being 3 weeks more pregnant than I'd ever been, I was desperately trying every trick to kickstart anything that felt like it might be labor to no avail. At my last appt I was 4cm dilated and he scheduled me for an NST and fluid check at the hospital the next evening. Shamefully, I was half hoping they'd find fluid dwindling or some other reason to go ahead and induce. (I know! I was desperate...) 

So on Saturday night at 7:30 we dropped DD#1 off with my parents & went to the hospital for the tests. Of course my wish wasn't granted, and her NST & fluid measurements were both perfect- we were given the all clear to let her keep baking & sent home. 

While we were there the monitor was picking up contractions and I could feel them but they weren't at all painful or regular so I assumed it was more Braxton hicks. After leaving the hospital we decided to just keep DD at my parents for the night and we headed to Target to walk around a bit & grab last minute necessities, while trying to get contractions to pick up. We stopped at Wendy's on the way home because I was craving a taco salad, and then we went to bed to get a good nights rest since nothing was changing on the contraction scale. 

Around 4:30am I started feeling sharp gas pains in my belly & back. I'd roll and they'd stop after a minute or so and I'd fall back asleep, but after a while they were getting too painful to sleep through and I figured that taco salad, topped with bean filled chili, was messing with my stomach. I decided to get up and walk around downstairs around 5am, waiting for what felt like inevitable diarrhea to hit. 

I was pacing and groaning, nearly constantly in pain now. It didn't hit me that they were contractions, because it was so much in my back and no timeable waves like I expected. There wasn't relief between them. Hello back labor! I could also hear my bowels grumbling (that really WAS compliments of the chili) and managed to to have several small bowel movements- after each contraction I'd feel urgency to go again, which convinced me it really was just an upset gut and not labor. 

Got to the hospital around 7, parked & walked, made it thru the registration paperwork somehow, took the longest elevator ride up to L&D with a car full of shift changing nurses all congratulating us and asking questions I was trying so hard to answer without screaming. Finally got to triage about 7:20 and was welcomed by the same nurses who has done our NST the night before. They laughed and welcomed us back. Got to a room & checked and was 6-7 cm dilated. I asked why it felt like contractions were non stop & after they did a quick ultrasound they found baby girl face up and explained that contractions WERE stopping but I was having constant back labor because of her head in my spine. They asked right there in triage if I wanted an Epi and I was so ready. They ordered it and got us to a delivery room around 7:45.

Anesthesiologist arrived at 8:15 and right after that was done they checked and I'd made it to 8cm. They did a walking epidural so my legs were still mobile, and once my belly was nice and numb the nurse started helping me roll with a peanut ball and hip exercises to try and get baby to flip. The Epi helped the pain but I was feeling CRAZY pressure still, and after about 20 mins of exercises I had a strong contraction and literally felt her head drop through my pelvis- it was so intense feeling my stomach felt like it flipped too. I gasped and the nurse said "yeah, I'm going to check you again, baby's heart rate just went crazy too" and sure enough at 8:50 I was 10cm and complete. 

She wanted to do a catheter and drain my bladder first, and then she went to grab the doctor. Literally as soon as she left my body went into involuntary push mode- it was the most overwhelmingly intense feeling. With #1 I actively had to bear down, count to ten, take a break and breathe... the whole normal pushing thing. With this one I had ZERO control- like my body took over to expel this kid as fast as possible. At this point any epidural coverage was gone and I was on fire. The dr came in and as I'm grunting/screaming he's asking if I feel like I need to push, then looks down and sees her crowing and goes "oh!" And scrambles to pull down the big light and get gloves on. They're yelling at me not to push, to grab my legs, to try to get them in the stirrups etc, but my body wasn't having it. I had zero control and could do nothing but brace myself- her head was out before he got his gloves all the way on. At he shoulders he finally stepped in and they coached me to push (not that I ever stopped..) and in one more involuntary force she was out. Born at 8:59 am. 

In a matter of minutes, a nearly 10lb human burst out like greased lightning. 4.5 hours after the first "gas pain" woke me up, just a little over an hour and a half after getting to the hospital, and less than 4 minutes of pushing. I actually texted my mom at 8:51 letting her know that I was 10cm dilated, and I was holding her at 8:59. 

The crotch rocket tore me from hole to hole, but thankfully stopped just before damaging anything at the backdoor lol, so they still called it a 2nd degree tear and after about a half hour of stitching I got cleaned up, dressed/covered and started nursing. My parents came in with DD#1 around 10am and we headed to our postpartum room around 11. I felt great all day, but had a long terrible night and was so ready to go home, so as soon as she hit the 24 hour mark I asked for discharge rather than spending the 2nd night and we were both cleared to go home. 

12 days later and my stitches/tear hardly hurt anymore- aside from the monster hemorrhoid I acquired that is causing some trouble, I actually almost feel normal down there already! All in all, I'm pretty in love with our second birth experience- as overwhelming as it was, it was nice to be done and over so quick! Best not try for a 3rd baby though... might end up with a kitchen floor delivery if my labors exponentially decrease like that!